The Great Commission

“What Happened Next Was a Blur . . .”

Jan 30, 2020 | Stories

Muharis and Ani met and married shortly after they had each been through a multi-week discipleship training on Disciple Making Movements (DMM) led by Beyond field leaders Ryan and Jane. Muharis and Ani wondered: How would Father God have them serve, in light of his desire for all peoples to hear of his Son? Both couples sought the Lord’s direction for Muharis and Ani’s life. The answer came. Muharis and Ani felt led to live and work among the Bimanese Muslims. Working with Ryan and Jane, they would form a new DMM team. They desired to see the knowledge of Christ and obedience to God’s Word transform this unreached people group.

Muharis and Ani moved to serve the Bimanese people and soon learned of another upcoming transition. They were expecting a baby! In 2017, Muharis held his baby girl for the first time and heard the doctor pronounce that all was good. Although Ani had needed an emergency C-section to deliver the baby, she would recover as they enjoyed their precious daughter. Muharis was elated.

It should have been a time of pure rejoicing.

What happened next was a blur to Muharis. Ani was in the recovery room when Muharis noticed a steady stream of blood oozing from his wife’s suture. He called for help. When the doctor arrived, he ordered her back into surgery. As he left to prepare, the doctor stated, “There is a 50-50 shot for me to be able to save your wife.” Muharis turned, saw his newborn daughter next to him, then fell to the floor in shock. He cried out to Father God in prayer. Then he called Ryan. Ryan and Jane mobilized their entire discipleship network in prayer for Ani.

Ani survived the ordeal. But the doctor removed her womb.

The removal was probably not necessary. A more proficient doctor might have saved Ani without removing her womb, but skilled doctors are rare in such remote places.

Since that day, God has blessed Muharis and Ani. He has honored their commitment to serve him no matter the personal cost. Their team has seen 117 discovery Bible study groups form. They have four house fellowships of baptized followers who meet regularly and are facilitating a second generation of discovery Bible groups!

Jesus told his disciples that following him would not be easy. We need to count the cost of discipleship.

“Those are not ancestors, but spirits who are lying to you.”

Dec 10, 2019 | Stories

After arriving in the general area of a country where Tai Lu people live, *Bob and his team checked into a hotel and rented some motorcycles. They were from a closely related people group and wanted to share the Good News with the Tai Lu people. After a night’s rest, they prayed together and pointed their motorbikes down the scenic, mountainous roads.

An hour later, they saw a sign pointing toward the district they were seeking. They prayed continually, “Lord lead us to those you have prepared, a ‘person of peace’” (Luke 10: 5-7). Soon they saw a lady tending a water buffalo and dressed in Tai Lu garb. They stopped and asked if there was a Tai Lu village near-by. She said yes and motioned them further down the road. Upon finding the village, the team soon spotted a couple working in their yard.

They greeted them, identifying themselves as being from a near culture. “We are here to visit with Tai Lu people.” Both the husband and wife were intrigued to meet people from another country yet like themselves. After inviting the visitors inside their home, conversation gradually unfolded.

“Will you tell us about your practices of ancestor worship?” Bob asked.

After hearing about their religious practices, someone on the team said, “Those are not ancestors, but spirits who are lying to you.” Despite this seemingly confrontational statement, the couple were open and even eager to hear what they had to say.

The visitors shared a Bible story about God’s creation and ended with the redeeming work of Christ on the Cross. Excited, the husband shared that an older Tai Lu man had visited them 20 years before. He had told them about a creator God who made everything, about Adam and Eve, and that all people are sinful. That was all he knew of the Bible message. In faith, the husband had been acting on that message as best as he could. This couple and their son were delighted to hear the full story of God’s love expressed through Jesus.

The family believed and was baptized that same day. The team left early in the afternoon and continued their search for spiritually prepared persons of peace in other villages. Later that afternoon, the man telephoned the prayer-walking team to tell how he was out sharing the Bible stories with others!

*pseudonyms used

“I’m in this Job for a Reason . . .”

Dec 4, 2019 | Stories

God convicted *John of not sharing his faith with his unbelieving co-workers. He became convinced that God had placed him in the exact cubicle, in this exact job for a reason – to tell them about Jesus and what he had done in John’s life.

John began by laying a foundation of prayer and asking some close friends to hold him accountable for sharing his testimony. He started going to lunch with six of his colleagues. He told them how the Bible had radically changed his life and asked if they would like to read it with him to learn what it says about God and people. Some of them rejected the suggestion outright; some remained silent.

Undeterred, John asked others: “I’ve never fully shared with you my life story. Could I share with you over lunch how Jesus changed my life?” John got a lot of no’s.

Then one day, John asked a manager named Jason, a known atheist, if he would like to study the Scriptures. Jason had been one of the silent people in the lunch group, but when asked one-on-one, Jason responded, “Sure. Why not?” Another co-worker said, “Yeah, I’ve never really read the Bible before.” John was surprised! These guys were the ones he had thought least likely to come!

On the first week, John printed out a short Bible story, and the group read through it. He asked what it said about God and about people. He then asked: “If this is true, how should you apply it in your life?” They were intrigued and kept coming to study. Word got around the office, and in a couple of months, most of those in the office were attending the lunch gatherings.

It wasn’t a scary or intense time. People walked in, picked up a sheet of paper, and started talking about it. Barriers came down. It was simple, straightforward, and moved beyond the office as the attendees told the stories to family and friends.

In similar ways, BEYOND mission catalysts seek to make obedient followers of Christ among the unreached. These disciples make other obedient disciples who plant churches that plant other churches. By living open lives and using simple, reproducible methods, we seek to bring God’s glory and saving power to those who don’t know him.

*pseudonyms used

Prayer Walking: An Important Part of our Strategy

Nov 26, 2019 | Stories

*Trisha was excited when *Saeng offered to lead her through a prayer-walking exercise. “Come, invite anyone,” Saeng said. “I’ll invite people too!” When the day arrived, five ladies gathered in the busy streets of the Mekong city they loved.

Saeng set the method and objectives for the morning. They would go in two small groups and pray aloud for one hour as they walked through the neighborhoods. Twice during the hour, they were to stop and still themselves for five minutes as they asked God what he wanted them to see. When they felt led to pray for someone, they were to ask for that person’s entire family to know God, not just that individual. Finally, they would ask God for a song to sing, since they couldn’t be certain when he would next be praised there.

A quick game of rock, paper, scissors determined who went in each group, then they decided what areas each group would cover. They chose a place to meet afterward, asked God to lead their time, and set off.

Trisha was teamed up with her language tutor, a woman she knew loved God but with whom she had never prayed before. “It was so sweet to walk through the streets, pleading for entire families to know God, with a local believer voicing agreement and pleading right beside me.”

As she walked, Trisha began to see the people in a new light. She could see the communities in which they belonged: shop owners helping each other to break a large bill, groups of women talking and children playing, street vendors swapping stories as they prepared food, motorcycle taxi drivers waiting together on the side of the road. Trisha was struck by what could happen in the families and communities if Jesus were welcomed by just one of them.

When they met up an hour later, they all discussed what had touched their hearts and what questions they had. Saeng took notes so they could read over them the next time they went prayer walking. After closing with a time of prayer, the ladies agreed not to let the experience stop with them. They would tell others about their experience and encourage them to try it for themselves.

How about you? Are you interested in seeing God’s kingdom multiplied around the world through intentional prayer and active obedience?

*pseudonyms used

From Triangles to Circles

Nov 14, 2019 | Stories

The BEYOND South Asia team had a problem. God had birthed a movement with them serving as catalysts. Now the movement among their focus people group had grown too large to continue using their old training and equipping model. As problems go, it was a good problem to have. The movement had done a phenomenal job of teaching disciple-making. It had many “Pauls,” disciple-makers mentoring others in disciple-making, and many “Timothys,” disciple-makers being mentored. Lives changed as followers of Jesus obeyed his word. Whole communities felt the impact. To meet the growing need of training thousands and nurturing their spiritual health, however, they needed a new approach.

The old model was like a triangle where each “Paul” would gather and train a group of 15 or more “Timothys.” This worked well in the beginning, but when numbers grew, problems arose. In the large meetings, several people never spoke up and never got help for the issues they faced. The financial cost of these gatherings also limited growth.

The catalyst team knew something had to change, but they didn’t have the answer. They had no guide book for how to develop the movement. So they prayed and listened for the Lord’s guidance, knowing he would provide.

He did, of course. In time, they connected with a brother in Christ from Africa who shared how a movement there had learned to deal with similar growing pains. In the African movement, groups of about five people from the same area meet regularly in a home. They sit in a circle as they discuss the positive and negative things they have faced that week in making disciples. Often, when someone has a problem, another from the group has faced a similar issue and can share what they have learned. They set goals and hold one another accountable for making disciples. No one struggles in silence. They each find community, care, and direction from like-minded brothers and sisters in Christ.

These groups are not leaderless. Each circle has a coach who meets with them. The coach is a fellow disciple-maker who has a bit more experience than the others. The coach belongs to a circle of his/her own peers and has a coach of their own. Through these interlocking circles, the experience and connections of more seasoned disciplers are available to the network.

For the leaders of the South Asian movement, a new paradigm began to emerge. Circles, not triangles. As they implemented the new model, they had to deconstruct their previously held beliefs about training and mentoring. They realized their tendency, like that of many others, was to go bigger. The idea of going small to be more effective was a step of faith for them, but they saw it work firsthand. People who used to sit in the back and not speak actively engaged in the smaller format. The focus stayed on disciple-making. The circle model would scale to meet their needs.

*pseudonyms

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